Interlocking Pieces
by ClaireinSorcia
Summary: Shawn is great at puzzles, but when he finds something he doesn't understand, he must find where it fits. A Shassie fic. M x M, don't like don't read.


Honestly, Shawn and Lassiter had been on quite a few cases by now, but even Shawn could tell that Lassie was warming up to him, at least a little. He'd ask for help, and a little bit more nicely, and though he would always say the obligatory lines about not wanting to work with him and Gus, there wasn't a seriousness to the words. To top it off, Shawn was even able to touch Lassister without getting threatened with death or mutilation.

Normally, whenever Shawn had touched Lassie, he'd gotten the 'icy glare of death' or the trademarked 'Lassie growl', and most definitely would get pushed away, or even pulled by Gus or Jules. Lassie had gotten a little easier about that too though; instead of pushing Shawn away immediately, it would take at least a few seconds longer before his annoyance would show.

Shawn never did complain about that one. Sure sometimes it would strike him as odd, and he'd mention most of the 'not Lassie' actions Lassie had been making lately, the niceties, but then again Shawn was always the touchy type, and Gus could attest to that.

But on one of the latest cases with Lassie, Shawn had been sure he'd overstepped his bounds. It was a standard case, at least standard for them. Guy or girl found dead, Shawn finds out it's murder with his 'psychic' abilities, and they're on the case, with a bit of traditional finagling. They were back at the precinct, pawing through the case file, having convinced it off of Jules by some miracle, and Shawn had pieced together enough for one of his 'visions'.

"I'm sensing something..." He announced, placing his fingers to his temples, "...but it's foggy. I need a conduit to see better." He added, and Gus stepped forward, looking proud. Shawn placed his hand over Gus' head, humming.

"Gus." Shawn said, aghast, opening one eye to look at Gus.

"What Shawn? Is it bad?" Gus asked worriedly.

"Your head is so soft, how do you do that?" Shawn continued, earning a scoff from Lassiter.

Gus opened his mouth to explain, only to be interrupted by Jules, "I'm sure we all want to know what happened at the _scene of the crime_ Shawn." She stressed, giving him a small warning glare.

Shawn sighed and concentrated again, almost massaging Gus' scalp while doing so, until he was almost shaking Gus, "Shawn. Shawn! SHAWN!" Gus whined, pushing Shawn's hand off, and rubbing his head. "That hurts."

"Sorry man, but your magic head isn't working. I gotta try someone else." Shawn looked over at Lassie pleadingly.

"No." Lassie responded.

Shawn sighed dramatically and turned to Jules, "You used me last time, it's his turn." She thumbed at Lassiter.

"She has a point Lassie, it is your turn." Shawn pouted.

"I said no." Lassie stated, crossing his arms.

"Gotta be you Lassie, I did Jules last time." Shawn argued, earning a childish chuckle from Gus.

"We really need some help on this one Lassiter, it won't be that bad." Jules added.

"Fine." He scoffed, uncrossing his arms. When Shawn didn't move right away, he rolled his eyes. "Come on Spencer, we haven't got all day."

Shawn strolled over to Lassie, tapping his chin in thought. He moved a step closer. And another. And one more, until, if he took another step, he'd be in Lassie's arms; instead Shawn had stepped close enough that their noses would bump if Lassie coughed.

"Spen..." He had started that warning trademark Lassie growl, but Shawn only shhh-ed him.

"I'm getting something." He murmured dramatically, edging his hand up to Lassie's face. He began to hum again, edging closer and closer until he rested his palm on Lassiter's cheek, and almost cupped it.

In truth, he normally closed his eyes for a 'vision' but he didn't want to end up slapped...or worse, so he kept them open this time. And honestly he was glad he did. Because something happened in that moment that made Shawn completely forget about his 'vision'.

He was yanked away by Gus' hand on his arm, pulled back away from Lassie, who stood there, stock still.

Jules interrupted the almost penetrable quiet, "Did you get something Shawn?" Lassie broke out of his trance, scowling a bit.

Shawn pulled out of his reverie, "In fact, I did..." and proceeded to tell them what they needed to know. Jules and Lassiter left to go work on the case, leaving Shawn and Gus behind.

"What...was that?" Gus questioned, accusing Shawn with his eyes of some sort of foul play.

"I don't know Gus, but I'm going to find out." He said narrowing his eyes, before turning to Gus. "Right after we get some smoothies, because it is lunch time."

"You got that right." Gus agreed, and let the moment pass. You had to when you lived with Shawn for so long.

Honestly knowing Shawn, he'd probably let it go by the time they finished their smoothies, but that is where Gus was wrong.

Right now, Shawn was still figuring out, or at least trying to figure out, something in his head. Shawn would question it and question it until in a couple of weeks, he would confront Lassiter about what exactly had happened back there.

Because Shawn was like a child with a puzzle piece. Only this was a very complicated puzzle, with a very good puzzler piecing it together, only to have found a piece that seemed to belong to the completely wrong puzzle altogether.

Lassie was in the evidence room putting away a few pieces from the last case Shawn had helped out with, and was busy fiddling with a stubborn filing cabinet when he noticed he wasn't alone.

"Can I help you Spencer?"

"Awwww, how did you know it was me? I thought my disguise was foolproof."

"Spencer, you're wearing fake glasses. I can still tell it's you."

"Works for Clark Kent." He said with a shrug, taking them off.

"What do you want Spencer, I'm kind of busy here."

"There's something that's been bothering me." Shawn began stepping forward. "About the other day."

"Spencer, that's not very specific." He said, stepping away from the stubborn filing cabinet, and a little away from Shawn.

"See I think I may have been wrong."

Lassiter harrumphed, "That's a first."

Shawn stepped forward again, and Lassiter moved backwards again, not wary, just courteous; he believed Shawn might need something from the case files, at least if he claimed he was wrong.

"I think I need to test my theory." He said, stepping forward again.

"What theory is that Spencer? Whatever it is, get on with it." Lassiter motioned to the cabinet impatiently, backing up again.

"I'm sensing something." He began, taking a longer stride forward, and then Lassie realized he had been backed into a corner. And though he wouldn't admit it, he gulped.

Shawn reached out like he had before, slowly but surely, towards Lassiter's face, and gradually slid his last foot forward until they were once again, a hair's breadth away.

"Spenc..." Lassie began the growl, and Shawn shh-ed him once more, placing his hand on Lassiter's cheek, an exact mirror of their prior position.

And like last time, barely noticeable, to all but the detail oriented, Lassie's pupils dilated.

Shawn did a mental celebration, congratulating himself. He hadn't been seeing things that day, and now Shawn had to try to see if that puzzle piece fit where he thought it did.

"Spencer..." Lassiter tried arguing again, but the trademarked growl was absent, and instead, it was just a word, and not really a threat.

Shawn moved in degrees, ever so slowly, until, with a slight twist of his head, he kissed Lassister, and held the position.

Surely, he told himself, I am dead, because there is no way Lassie would let me do this. But there he was, lips on Lassiter's, a little unsure on how to play this one out. Considering he wasn't being shoved away, he was getting somewhere.

Too afraid to close his eyes for fear of death, or waking up (because this had to be a dream, it had to...didn't it?), he just stared back into Lassie's icy blue eyes, and figured, 'heck, why not?' and began to really, _really_ kiss Carlton Lassister.

But Carlton just sat there, staring back, unmoving and Shawn inwardly sighed, and pulled back, noses bumping ever so slightly. "Lassie, you gotta relax." He chided, expecting a quip, but he didn't move.

Shawn took it as a good sign. _'I can do this, just need some inspiration. If only Gus were here, he'd know what to say. "Shawn, you are a leaf on the wind, now soar..."_ Actually maybe that particular line wasn't a good choice. _'Yah Shawn, because tragic endings aren't how you want this to go'_ he thought to himself, and somewhere his inner Gus voice argued _'I wouldn't say that Shawn, that is absurd.'_. But he ignored inner Gus, and plunged onward.

He kissed Lassie again, and still, nothing. Shawn moved his spare hand to rest over Lassiter's heart, and pushed the other up into Lassie's hair, cradling his head. Then he felt Lassie's shoulders finally relax, felt the tension release, just a little. But Shawn was still frustrated. Lassie just wasn't kissing back.

He moved back again, forehead resting against the other man's. He pushed off with a sigh, and looked Lassiter in the eyes, "Lassie you _can_ kiss back, I promise." Being the detail perceptive person he was, he saw the ever so small nod Carlton gave him.

And with that Shawn surged forward again, closed his eyes, and kissed Lassiter like the world was being invaded by rabid bunnies. _'That doesn't even make any sense Shawn.'_ But Shawn thought it anyway, and pushed his hand up, holding onto Lassiter's hair.

He felt Lassie's erratic heartbeat against his other palm, and with that little motion of his hand in Lassie's hair he also felt the shiver that traveled along Lassie's spine. It was all it took for the dam to finally break.

Lassiter moved with a lightning speed, one hand around Shawn's waist, holding his back, and the other snaking up to cradle Shawn's head, holding Shawn in place as he kissed the daylights out of him.

When they finally pulled back for air, hands and arms still entangled, panting, Lassiter spoke first.

"Spencer."

Shawn didn't lie but the way Lassie said it was downright _delicious_. The growl was gone, and now, with Lassie out of breath, it was a quiet sigh.

"Whoa Lassie, I gotta say, that was amazing. I didn't even know you kissed so _good_. I mean damn man...did you like...mmmmphm." And Shawn's rambling was silenced (though he didn't complain) by another kiss, instigated, for once, by Carlton.

And in Shawn's head, he found the place for the puzzle piece, and realized that him and Lassiter just might be interlocking pieces.


End file.
